David Hunter released from prison in Cyprus after serving his sentence for the murder of his wife

Retired British miner David Hunter has been freed for time already served after a Cypriot judge sentenced him to two years in prison for the manslaughter of his seriously ill wife.

Hunter, 76, admitted to suffocating Janice, his wife of 52 years, at their home on the island after she “begged” him to end her life while she was suffering from breast cancer. blood.

On Monday, judges at the Paphos District Court imposed a two-year prison sentence on Hunter, who has already spent 19 months in custody.

His legal team said he was released shortly after sentencing, even though Cypriot prison authorities had officially calculated his release date.

Asked by outside reporters what he was feeling, a visibly moved Hunter said, “I can’t describe it. I'm sorry. I wish I could, I wish I could find words to describe it but I can't.

“When you are under pressure for two years, without knowing which way it will go.”

His daughter Lesley Cawthorne, who launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise money for his defence, spoke to him on the phone shortly after the sentencing.

She said: “Talking to my dad was the most incredible thing. I feel like my heart has been put back together.

Judges previously found Hunter not guilty of the more serious charge of premeditated murder.

His legal team argued that he should receive a suspended sentence, in a case that constitutes a legal first in the country.

In mitigation last week, his lawyer, Ritsa Pekri, said his motive was to “free his wife from everything she was going through due to her medical condition.”

The court heard that Mrs Hunter “wished” to die and that her husband “had nothing but loving feelings for her”.

Hunter, of Ashington, Northumberland, told his trial, which lasted more than a year, that his wife “cried and begged” him to end his life.

He broke down in tears as he said he would “never in a million years” have taken Ms Hunter’s life unless she asked him to.

He showed the court how he held his hands over his wife's mouth and nose and said he finally decided to grant her wish after she became “hysterical”.

The court heard he then attempted suicide by taking an overdose, but doctors arrived in time to save him.